Flexible waisted doll utilizing elastomeric coupling member

ABSTRACT

A doll which can pivot at the waist to perform a shaking dance movement, including an elongated rubber coupling member that connects the upper and lower torso portions of the doll. The lower torso portion has a convexly rounded top while the upper torso portion partially encompasses the top of the lower torso. The coupling member is constructed to hold the torso portions a small distance apart to prevent interference as they pivot on one another, and it has a narrowest diameter within the lower torso portion and near the center of curvature of the convexly rounded part thereof to allow pivoting thereabout.

United States Patent Garcia et al. 1 Sept. 12, 1972 [54] FLEXIBLEWAISTED DOLL UTILIZING 2,007,784 7/1935 Wittmann ..46/ 173 ELASTOMERICCOUPLING MEMBER 3,277,602 10/1966 Speers et al ..46/164 X [72]Inventors: Armando J. Garcia, Sylmar; Grego- FOREIGN TS OR APPLICATIONSry M. Gunther, Palos Verdes Estates; Juanito 0 villanueva I Australla ILawndale, all f Cafifi 937,936 1/1956 Germany ..46/ 173 [73] Assignee:Mattel, Inc., Hawthorne, Calif. Primary Barry Shay 22 l 4, 1970Att0rney-Seymour A. Scholnick A doll which can pivot at the waist toperform a shakil ..46/16A1 mg dance movement, including an velongatedrubber n I I i n I I I I l u s l u I u [58] Field of 'ig'fgj 2 6 torsoportions of the doll. The lower torso portion has a convexly rounded topwhile the upper torso portion partially encompasses the top of the lowertorso. The [56] References Cited coupling member is constructed to holdthe torso por- UNITED STATES PATENTS tions a small distance apart topreyent interference as they plvot on one another, and it has anarrowest 2,760,303 8/1956 Del Mas ..46/162 X diameter within the lowertorso portion and near the center of curvature of the convexly roundedpart e er b 2,271,711 2/1942 Pallett ..46/173 mo 0 0w mg em 1,605,61511/1926 Rothstein "46/ 173 6 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures P'ATENTEDSEH 02 I3.690.030

. INVENTORS Hemmuoo J. 602cm Gees oev M 6 uM n45? FLEXIBLE WAISTED DOLLUTILIZING ELASTOMERIC COUPLING MEMBER BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.Field of the Invention:

This invention relates to dolls.

2. Description of the Prior Art:

Dolls that are life-like representations of children or young adultshave proven to be highly entertaining toys for girls. Among the mostpopular of such dolls have been those which represent young fashionmodels that can perform life-like movements or which can berealistically posed. One type of movement that can add considerableentertainment value is a movement that enables the doll to simulatedancing of the type which is popular with teen-agers. These movementscan be simulated by constructing a doll so it can pivot at the waist.However, such a doll must retain its realistic fashion appearance,should be capable of maintaining itself upright instead of flopping overin an uncontrolled manner when played with, and should be capable ofmanufacture at low cost.

OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present inventionis to provide a doll which can perform movements simulating popularteen-age dances, in an entertaining and realistic manner.

Another object is to provide a doll of realistic appearance and low costwhich can resiliently pivot about its waist. Y

In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, a doll isprovided which can swing back and forth at the waist in a mannersimulating popular dance movements, the doll having an attractivelife-like appearance duringits swinging motion, and tending to retain afirm upright position when not being purposely oscillated. The dollincludes upper and lower body parts that are connected by a resilientcoupling member of elastomericmaterial. The lower body part has a convexupper end that'is encompassedby a concave lower end of the upper bodypart, to conceal the waist joint of the doll as it swings. The couplingmember has a narrow diameter portion extending within the convex lowerbody part to encourage pivoting about the center of curvature of theadjacent body surfaces. The coupling member is of a length thatmaintains the body parts slightly spaced from each other to preventinterference for moderate angles of swinging.

The lower end of the coupling member has a square region which isengaged with a'square recess in the lower body part to prevent relativerotation. The upper end of the coupling member has a corrugated portionwhich engages stops on the upper body part to resist rotation. However,the corrugations allow rotation of the upper body part and retention atany one of several rotational positions, to pose the doll at any one ofseveral twisted orientations.

The novel features of the invention are set forth with particularity inthe appended claims. The invention will be best understood from thefollowing description when read in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings.

2 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a sectional frontelevation view of a doll constructed in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional side view of the doll of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken on the line3--3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of FIG. 2; and

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the coupling member of the doll of FIG.1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 illustrates a doll witha lower body assembly 10 and with an upper body assembly 12 that canpivot about the waist region 14 to positions such as that indicated at12A. The lower body assembly 10 includes a torso portion formed by apair of lower housing parts 16 and 18, while the upper torso portion isformed by a pair of upper housing parts 20 and 22. The lower housingparts are held together by pins 24 of the forward housing part 18 thatare received in holes 26 of the rearward housing part 16, while theupper torso housing parts 20 and 22 are similarly held together by pins24 received in holes 26. The lower and upper body assemblies 10, 12 areconnected together by a coupling member 28.

The coupling member 28, which is constructed of an elastomeric or otherresilient material, has lower and upper end portions that are held inthe lower and upper body assemblies 10, 12. A groove 30 in the lower endportion of the coupling member receives flanges 32 of the lower housingparts 16, 18, while another groove 34 in the upper portion of thecoupling member receives flanges 36 of the upper housing parts 20, 22.Inorder to encourage pivoting of the upper and lower body parts at thewaist region 14, the coupling member is provided with a narrow diameterportion 38 that extends near the waist of the doll. It may be noted thatan elongated upper portion 40 of the coupling member has acruciformcross-section to resist bending therealong, so that any bendingoccurs near the waist.

In order to'promote a natural appearance even during bending, the lowerbody assembly 10 is provided with a convex upper end portion 42, whilethe lower end 44 of the upper body assembly 12 is formed to closelyengage the convex lower portion 42. If the upper body assembly 12 can bemade to pivot about a point 46 near the center of curvature ofthe'convex portion 42, then the visible gap 48 between the upper andlower body portions can be maintained .at a minimum during pivoting. Inorder to encourage pivoting near the point 46, the narrow diameterportion 38 extends partially within the convex region 42 and thereforenear the point 46. Actually, the illustrated doll is constructed so thatthe point at which the upper body assembly pivots is at a location 50spaced slightly from the point 4.6, this spacing between the points 46and 50 provided as a result of limited space in the lower torso area.However, the fact that the actual pivot point 50 is within the convexlower body portion and therefore close to the center of curvaturethereof at 46, results in only a small change in the gap 48 duringpivoting. This 'change generally is not-noticeable .to a

child. The length of the coupling member 28 is chosen so that a definitegap at 48 is provided to prevent interference of the upper and lowerbody parts during a considerable pivoting of the upper body assembly,such as up to about from a central quiescent position. The

diameter of a hole 51 in the convexly rounded lower torso portion 42, ismade large enough to permit bending of the-coupling member during suchpivoting.

It is desirable that the upper body assembly 12 remain facing in aforward or some other desired position rather than being freelyrotatable about a vertical axis. To prevent free rotation about an axis53 extending along the length of the figure, the lower end portion ofthe coupling member is provided with a square region 52. As best shownin FIG. 4, the square region 52 is engaged by corresponding straightflanges 54 of the rearward housing part 16. In order to prevent freerotation of the upper body assembly 12, the upper end of the couplingmember is provided with a corrugated posing portion 56. As shown in FIG.3, the corrugated portion 56 is engaged by tubular parts 58 that formtwo of the holes 26 that receive'pins. The corrugations on the portion56 which provide radially projecting parts, prevent free rotation yetallow pivoting and retention at any one of eight rotational positions. Achild can pose the upper body assembly 12 to a new rotational positionabout a vertical axis by forcing the doll to pivot to the new position.A circular flange 57 of the coupling member, which contacts the frontand back of housing parts 20, 22, helps to maintain the position of thecoupling member.

The use of a single elastomeric coupling member 28 simplifiesconstruction of the doll while permitting the desired amount offlexibility. The hardness of the elastomeric material is chosen, inrelation to the diameter and length of the narrow portion 38 thereof, topermit swinging motion of the doll at its waist when it is purposelyshaken, while allowing the doll to resist excessive bending merely byits weight. In other words, the doll is designed to remain substantiallyupright when not disturbed. The design of the coupling member 28 enablesit to be quickly installed during the assembly of the doll, as byinstalling it in the rear housing parts 16 and 20 and then snapping thefront housing parts 18 and 22 in place.

Thus, the invention provides a toy figure or doll using a minimum ofeasily formed parts that can be readily assembled. The doll has arealistic appearance and allows pivoting at the waist in a manner thatpreserves the realistic appearance during pivoting, while maintainingthe doll in an upright position when it is not purposely shaken.Pivoting can occur from side to side or frontwards and backwards, and itenables the doll to simulate popular dancing movements that involvepivoting at the waist. The upper doll portion can be posed at severalpositions besides a straight-ahead orientation, and it firmly maintainsany of such positions until purposely rotated to a new one, although thedoll will oscillate about a vertical axis.

Although particular embodiments of the invention have been described andillustrated herein, it is recognized that modifications and variationsmay readily occur to those skilled in the art and, consequently, it isintended that the claims be interpreted to cover such modifications andequivalents.

What is claimed is:

1. A toy figure comprising:

an upper body assembly including an upper torso portion having an openlower end;

an elongated coupling member constructed of elastomeric resilientmaterial and having opposite ends respectively secured to said upper andlower torso portions, said coupling member being sufficiently stiff tonormally support said upper torso portion in a substantially uprightposition while allowing it to pivot laterally at least several degreeswhen said figure is shaken;

the upper end of said lower torso portion being shaped to be received inthe open lower end of said torso portion; and

said coupling member holding adjacent portions of said torso portions inspaced relation and having a smallest diameter portion extending atleast partially within a region of said lower torso portion which issurrounded by the lower end of said upper torso portion.

2. The toy figure described in claim 1 wherein:

said coupling member has an axis extending in a direction along itslength, and has a posing portion extending about said axis with aplurality of radi-' ally projecting parts; and

one of said torso portions being rotatably secured to said couplingmember for rotation about said axis and having means for engaging saidprojecting parts of said posing portion to releasably resist relativerotation thereof while allowing such rotation when a large rotatingtorque is applied.

3. The toy figure described in claim 2 wherein:

said coupling member includes a circular flange adjacent to said posingportion and of a larger radius than the radius of any of said parts ofsaid posing portion. 7

4. A toy figure which can pivot laterally at its waist comprising:

a pair of upper torso housing members fitted together to form an uppertorso region above the waist region of the figure;

a pair of lower torso housing members fitted together to form a lowertorso region below the waist region of the figure; and

an elongated coupling member of elastomeric material with upper andlower end portions in said upper and lower torso regions and with anintermediate portion between said end portions, each of said endportions having a groove therein;

each of said pairs of torso housing members having interior portionsfitting into a corresponding one of said grooves of said coupling memberto retain it; and

said intermediate portion of said coupling member being narrower thanportions on either side thereof and holding said upper and lower regionsin spaced relation, to induce pivoting of said upper torso region withrespect to said lower region about said middle portion of said couplingmember.

5. The toy figure described in claim 4 wherein:

each of said end portions of said coupling member has a non-circularpart; and

each of said torso regions has means for engaging one of saidnon-circular parts, to resist rotation relative thereto.

6. The toy described in claim 4 wherein:

6 the upper end of said lower torso region is convexly said couplingmember has a length sufficient to rounded substantially about apredetermined slightly separate said upper and lower torso recenter ofcurvature, and the l r d f id gions, and said intermediate portion ofsaid upper torso region i Open and extends substancoupling memberextends along a location near 5 the center of curvature of said lowertorso region.

tially over and about said upper end of said lower torso region; and

1. A toy figure comprising: an upper body assembly including an uppertorso portion having an open lower end; an elongated coupling memberconstructed of elastomeric resilient material and having opposite endsrespectively secured to said upper and lower torso portions, saidcoupling member being sufficiently stiff to normally support said uppertorso portion in a substantially upright position while allowing it topivot laterally at least several degrees when said figure is shaken; theupper end of said lower torso portion being shaped to be received in theopen lower end of said torso portion; and said coupling member holdingadjacent portions of said torso portions in spaced relation and having asmallest diameter portion extending at least partially within a regionof said lower torso portion which is surrounded by the lower end of saidupper torso portion.
 2. The toy figure described in claim 1 wheRein:said coupling member has an axis extending in a direction along itslength, and has a posing portion extending about said axis with aplurality of radially projecting parts; and one of said torso portionsbeing rotatably secured to said coupling member for rotation about saidaxis and having means for engaging said projecting parts of said posingportion to releasably resist relative rotation thereof while allowingsuch rotation when a large rotating torque is applied.
 3. The toy figuredescribed in claim 2 wherein: said coupling member includes a circularflange adjacent to said posing portion and of a larger radius than theradius of any of said parts of said posing portion.
 4. A toy figurewhich can pivot laterally at its waist comprising: a pair of upper torsohousing members fitted together to form an upper torso region above thewaist region of the figure; a pair of lower torso housing members fittedtogether to form a lower torso region below the waist region of thefigure; and an elongated coupling member of elastomeric material withupper and lower end portions in said upper and lower torso regions andwith an intermediate portion between said end portions, each of said endportions having a groove therein; each of said pairs of torso housingmembers having interior portions fitting into a corresponding one ofsaid grooves of said coupling member to retain it; and said intermediateportion of said coupling member being narrower than portions on eitherside thereof and holding said upper and lower regions in spacedrelation, to induce pivoting of said upper torso region with respect tosaid lower region about said middle portion of said coupling member. 5.The toy figure described in claim 4 wherein: each of said end portionsof said coupling member has a non-circular part; and each of said torsoregions has means for engaging one of said non-circular parts, to resistrotation relative thereto.
 6. The toy described in claim 4 wherein: theupper end of said lower torso region is convexly rounded substantiallyabout a predetermined center of curvature, and the lower end of saidupper torso region is open and extends substantially over and about saidupper end of said lower torso region; and said coupling member has alength sufficient to slightly separate said upper and lower torsoregions, and said intermediate portion of said coupling member extendsalong a location near the center of curvature of said lower torsoregion.